Donald Sterling's Ban From The NBA Could Make Him Some Serious Money

Clippers owner Donald Sterling. Stephen Dunn/Getty Images While just about everyone has been jumping on the "bash Donald Sterling" bandwagon — including Clipper lovers, haters, sponsors, organizations, and the media, most have overlooked one important thing.

Boycotting the Clippers will not financially hurt Sterling. It will hurt the players, the concession stand workers, and the surrounding restaurants and shops that make their livelihood from the Clippers and their games.

The guy that is the target of their vitriol — Donald Sterling — is likely to be the one that will realize a financial bonanza from the controversy surrounding his remarks recorded during a private conversation with his girlfriend.

How can this be?

Now that the NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, has fined Donald Sterling $2.5 million and banned him from basketball for life, it is likely that Silver will be able to convince the required three-quarters of the owners to force a Clippers ownership change. If that happens, Sterling would realize a net gain of between half a billion and one billion dollars even after the fine, lost sponsorships, and other costs are factored into the equation.

Costs

The costs to Sterling are likely to include the following:

NBA fine: $2.5 million — the maximum allowed under the NBA constitution — to be donated to selected charities.

Corporate image damage: After the sale, there is likely to be no net impact on brand damage to the Clippers. In fact, Magic Johnson, David Geffen, and other interested bidders will likely benefit from the halo effect caused by turning a big negative into a big positive.

Revenues and gains

On the positive side of the income statement, Sterling realizes the following:

Revenue: $128 million

Operating Income: $15 million — this nearly washes out the effect of the fines, lost sponsorships, and purchase price paid in 1981.

Proceeds from the forced sale of the Clippers: Estimated between $550 million and over $1 billion.

Net proceeds

The net proceeds from subtracting the likely costs from estimated gains is expected to be $548 million to $1 billion, depending on the sale price to a new owner.

Sterling's net worth

Donald Sterling made most of his fortune from his law practice, real estate holdings, and other businesses. According to Forbes Magazine, his current net worth is $1.9 billion. Depending on the sale price of the Clippers, this is likely to go up accordingly.

Brand damage train wreck

While the uproar and aftermath is not likely to have a negative financial impact on Donald Sterling, it will damage his personal brand. Another Donald - Trump— weighed in on the image of Sterling's girlfriend, V. Stiviano, calling her "the girlfriend from hell."

Leaders rise above the fray

The brand image of the NBA was dragged into this mess, but the quick response by the new commissioner, Adam Silver, has done a good job of turning the negative situation into a positive. Silver consulted with players, owners, and other important leaders, and quickly made perhaps the best decision he could make under the circumstances — assessing the maximum fine of $2.5 million and banning Sterling from the Clippers and professional basketball. Similarly, Clippers coach Doc Rivers showed a lot of leadership and acted with tremendous class throughout the episode.

All the hurt unlikely to hurt Sterling's bank account

Despite all the damage and hurt this episode has caused, the one thing that is unlikely to be hurt is Donald Sterling's bank account. The hope is that the fans and public will realize this and not boycott the players and all those whose livelihoods depend on the Clippers. During the fifth playoff game against the Golden State Warriors, the fans showed solidarity with the team by holding signs that read "We are one" while cheering the team to victory.

A teachable moment

It is important for all those in positions of leadership and authority to use this episode as a teaching moment. America is not about "anti's" and "ism's." It is about equal opportunity, respect, liberty, and justice for all.